Auburn to host newest SEC championship event -- equestrian

Auburn will host the SEC's newest championship event, as the league announced Wednesday that the inaugural Southeastern Conference equestrian championship will be held March 29-30 at the Auburn University Horse Center.

The conference announced in June that it was adding equestrian as its 21st championship sport -- its first since softball in 1997. The four SEC teams that compete in the sport -- Auburn, Georgia, South Carolina and Texas A&M -- are the only programs to ever win National Collegiate Equestrian Association team national championships.

Georgia has won five of those titles, including three straight from 2008-10. Auburn, South Carolina and Texas A&M each have won two national crowns.

"Our institutions that are participating in equestrian have had great success in it," SEC commissioner Mike Slive said. "The SEC championship should be another outstanding event for the league. We are looking forward to the inaugural championship in Auburn."

The 60-acre Auburn University Horse Center opened in 2002.

"We are honored and excited to host the first-ever sanctioned SEC championship, and we know it will be a great event," Auburn head coach Greg Williams said. "This is a monumental accomplishment for the sport of equestrian that all of the coaches in the SEC have worked hard for. It will be a weekend that we will all take pride in seeing to fruition."